Tomorrow we will have lived in this house for a year and Tennessee for a year and a half. I’m happy we live here although there are some things I miss about California. A lot of changes, and a slower pace of life.

In California, you open your own door. When we moved to Tennessee I learned that men actually hold the door open for you.

In California, you don’t talk to strangers. In TN the post office line and the waiting room in the WalMart tire care center are prime spots for all sorts of conversation ranging from the town’s history, how much the climate has changed over the last 20 years, trucks, and animals/farming information.

In California, people use street signs to give directions. In TN, they use landmarks (turn right at the lopsided tree and go, oh, I dunno about…er….Hey woman! how long on that one road till you git to our road?…say, about 2 miles or so and then turn left or sumthin’ when a little dog runs out to bite yer tires.)

Since moving to TN I’ve gotten used to being called Baby-Doll, Sweetheart, Sweetie-Pie, Darlin’, Honey, and the like.

In TN, people call *me*, a mere kid, "Ma’am". In CA, I was "kid" or "kiddo"

In California, if people had a nice car, they usually had a nice house to go with it. Here in TN, one of our neighbors recently removed his mobile home, DOWNgraded to a junkier mobile home, and then about a month later suddenly had a corvette in his driveway. (huh?!)

California believed in Health Food.

Some things I prefer about TN:

A slower paced life. Everyone is friendlier out here.

Its pretty in the summer….nice green rolling hills.

We’ve met a lot of neato friends.

We have done more as a family.

Some things I miss about Northern California:

Family

Camping in French Meadows….2 hours from civilization, no electricity, where running water meant there was a clean clear river, a WONDERFUL swimming hole, great fishing, fun hiking trails, and snow for snow cones if you drove to the top of the mountain.

Health Food and restaurants that didn’t believe the only cooking method was frying.

No humidity!

The winters and springs were beautiful.

Lovely sunrises and sunsets with brilliant colors.

Real Mountains

I’m really wanting to go camping right now. I love Tennessee, but I really miss some things about CA.

I was actually born here in Indiana, but met and married dh in NM. We lived there and had our 1st 4 children before moving here and staying for the past 10 years.

Dh's family is there, my Mom and our friends…. favorite restaurants. It is really hard sometimes, missing living there, but I know this is where God has us. I sometimes hope we move back, and I sometimes wish we would stay here forever.. . Life is funny that way.

Of course, if we were in NM, there is *no way* I'd be drivin' to TN for your bday… no offense!